Partly in force
Receiving mandatory for everyone since 1 September 2026; large and mid-sized companies must also issue, SMEs from September 2027.
| 1 Sep 2026 | All businesses must be able to RECEIVE; large and mid-sized companies must ISSUE |
| 1 Sep 2027 | SMEs and micro-enterprises must issue |
Format: Factur-X (CII in a PDF/A-3), UBL or CII
Transmission: PDP (Plateformes de Dématérialisation Partenaires) + PPF directory
France is the reason hybrid PDFs matter: Factur-X is a normal-looking PDF with the CII XML attached. Transmission runs through accredited PDPs — becoming one requires accreditation, but producing and checking the files does not.
Validate a France invoice against the profile that applies here — EN 16931 (core).
See a worked example → · Upload your own →
This country runs on hybrid PDFs. Drop the PDF straight in — the invoice XML is pulled out and checked, and so is the PDF wrapper itself: the /AF array, the /AFRelationship and the XMP profile declaration, which a validator that only reads the XML will not look at. See a correctly formed one →
Nothing is stored, and the whole invoice is checked, not just this rule. A PDF only works if it is Factur-X / ZUGFeRD — a PDF with the invoice XML inside it.